Surface effects on the vibration and buckling of piezoelectric nanoplates

In this letter, surface effects on the vibration and buckling of a clamped-clamped piezoelectric nanoplate (PNP) are investigated by using Kirchhoff plate theory with the incorporation of the surface piezoelectricity model and the generalized Young-Laplace equations. Ritz solutions show that the surface effects on the resonant frequency are more prominent for the PNPs with smaller thickness and larger aspect ratio, with dominant effect from surface piezoelectricity and residual surface stress. Results also suggest potential for frequency tuning of the PNPs via applied electric potentials. Simulation results on the critical buckling potential indicate that the influence of the combined surface effects is the competition between the residual surface stress and surface piezoelectricity. This work is helpful for the characterization of the mechanical properties and design of PNP-based devices. Copyright (C) EPLA, 2012